I’m getting better at not being wasteful. Also, I can multi-task like a mo-fo. Today proved both to be true.
After a very eventful weekend, something got ahold of my husband and he spent most of last night very, very sick. We think it was his meal out but since we both had the same dish, it just doesn’t make sense 🙁
I took the day off to tend to him and to make sure he didn’t bite the big one while I was at the office (just kidding!). This morning, while he slept off last nights vom-fest, I made Meyer lemon salt with the two extra lemons from yesterdays homemade limoncello project. I can’t wait to tell you all about that but I will wait (*huff*) until it has been strained and tasted – 3 months from now.
Currently, the big guy is at least out of bed and attempting to put down (and keep down) the egg whites I cooked up using Saturday’s reserves from the yolks required to make the fricassee. I also have a pot of stock simmering so I can try to nurse him back to health later. I used filtered water, the chicken parts I saved (from the fricassee), two organic carrots, one whole large shallot, two stalks of celery, and a bouquet garni (bundle of thyme, parsley, and bay leaf). The makings of a nutritious chicken broth so I can get my Mr. back up and running. Fingers crossed –
The house smells great and I’m excited to show you how I made the aforementioned salt. Meyer lemons are neat because they are a cross between a common lemon and sweet mandarin orange. They have a thin skin and less pith (the white stuff) making them less bitter. I will not walk by them when they are in season, too beautiful and delicious to pass up.
Meyer Lemon Salt
Makes (2) 8 oz jars
Ingredients
16 oz of kosher salt – this brand has no additives I noticed
White vinegar – to clean any wax on the lemons (use a paper towel dampened with the vinegar and rub the surface of each lemon. Rinse under hot water)
Zest of 2 Meyer lemons – currently in season
Flat leaf parsley
Thyme
Make it:
First you need (2) sterilized 8 oz mason jars (boil them in water for 15 minutes and let air dry).
Finely chop about 2-3 tbsp of parsley and roughly 1.5 tbsp of thyme.
Note: feel free to play around with the types of herbs and the amount.
Next step: dry your zest and herbs
Line a baking sheet with tin foil, preheat your oven to 200 and lay everything out.
I did about 15 minutes at 200 and then lowered to 150 for another 15 to get most of the moisture out.
Finally, put your kosher salt and dried zest/herbs into a food processor. I used my Vitamix:
Pulse your food processor to break down the salt a little and mix everything together. Then just pour evenly into your mason jars 🙂
You’re done! I wish I had a larger vocabulary to describe how this salt smells – It’s wonderfully aromatic and I can’t wait to use it on everything from chicken, to fish, to vegetables. If I had to pick one word to describe it to you, it would be – invigorating. Yum.
*Note: if you want to get more creative – use organic sugar and dried Meyer lemon zest instead. My wheels are churning thinking of all the uses for that deliciousness.
Thanks for reading 🙂